Birdseye View Of Times Square From The Times Tower Building c. 1910

Our view comes from the Keystone Mast Collection and shows the rapidly developing Times Square.

But as you can see, north of 42nd Street there are no skyscraper buildings. While many eight to ten story buildings dot the landscape, the tallest structure in this vicinity is the building where the photo was taken from.

The roof of the flatiron-shaped, New York Times Tower Building which opened in 1905 was an ideal spot for capturing this panorama. Broadway and Seventh Avenue converge at 42nd Street and this would become known as the “Crossroads of the World.”

On the left is the Hotel Astor. To the right is The New York Theatre, housing a vast entertainment complex.

Invisible from street level, the Hotel Astor’s famous roof garden can be plainly seen here. From spring until autumn, diners could eat al fresco. The New York Theatre’s large sign on the roof lets passerby know prices range from a quarter to a dollar.

The northern part of Times Square, later called Duffy Square, at 46th Street is already becoming a magnet for large advertising billboards. A Gillette Razor sign adorns the spot where Admiral Television and Pepsi would later erect their famous signs in the 1950s. Gillette’s New York offices were located in The Times Tower Building.

So is it more effective to use two words to advertise your product as in Gillette’s large outdoor sign? Or hundreds of words in a magazine?